US EditionEntrepreneurs working to find funds to restore historic theatres across the Prairies
- David Stupnikoff leads efforts to restore the Princess Theatre, a historic 110-year-old venue in Edmonton's Old Strathcona district, closed since 2020.
- The theatre shuttered due to aging infrastructure, including asbestos, damaged plumbing, and flooding from heavy rains, requiring extensive repairs estimated at $2.5 million.
- Stupnikoff envisions the venue as a multi-use space for performers and the public, aiming to revitalize Whyte Avenue and support Indigenous artists amid closures of gathering places.
- He initiated a GoFundMe with a $9.2 million goal, noting it likely will not be fully met by public funds, though private donors have expressed interest, and money will go to charity if unsuccessful.
- Similar restoration projects are underway, such as Michael Redhead Champagne’s plan for Winnipeg's Palace Theatre and Jocelyn Dougherty’s operation of Estevan’s Orpheum Theatre, reflecting regional challenges in preserving historic venues.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Chicago Sun Times
WBEZA young family risked it all to save iconic music venue Fitzgeralds. Can they make it work?
Will Duncan, then general manager of Thalia Hall in Pilsen, was stuck in westbound traffic on the Eisenhower after a long day on the job. He decided to pull off and try Roosevelt Road to get to Elmhurst, where he lived with his wife, Jessica King, and their young son.He passed Fitzgeralds nightclub in Berwyn.Oh my God, I remember that place, he thought, brought back to a night out long ago. That place looks so cool.He stopped for a drink. And, l…
Winnipeg Free Press
Entrepreneurs working to find funds to restore historic theatres across the Prairies
Breaking News, Sports, Manitoba, Canada
Entrepreneurs working to find funds to restore historic theatres across the Prairies - The Turtle Island News
By Aaron Sousa Not a day goes by that David Stupnikoff doesn’t think about the Princess Theatre. “I drive by it regularly, and I’ve had other friends and people that have visited, and they have such great memories of it,” said Stupnikoff, a courier service owner and show promoter. “People wish it would come back.” Juxtaposed between two brownstones in Edmonton’s historic Old Strathcona district, it is one of a handful of early theatres still sta…
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